Many cities, towns, and schools will be coming to the people who pay the bills in November and will be asking for more money, a levy.

Do they really need the money? How are they spending the money you give them now? Could they do a better job of spending and using the current resources, Could they be better stewards with your tax dollars?

Here is whats happening in Toledo, Maybe you should be asking these same questions !!!!

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Toledo, OH. Does Toledo really need the Levy? No one knows, because Toledo refuses to do a Performance Audit or post their checkbook on line for all to see.

Toledo is hosting Town Hall meetings in each district to push the levy. When you attend one of these town hall meetings, tell them you went to Ohio Check Book to look at Toledo spending, but there’s no data there since 2014.

You might also mention that Mayor Bell and Mayor Collins promised to do a comprehensive and exhaustive Performance Audit, but to date, nothing has been done.

A performance Audit would look at ALL Toledo resources, labor contracts, financials, and evaluate where the city is doing a good job and where they need to improve.

Ohio’s treasure, Josh Mandel, put Ohio’s entire checkbook on line for all to see. Mandel made the web site available to any state public entity to also share their checkbook on-line. Toledo started doing it (CLICK HERE) , but hasn’t updated the data since 2014.

You can CLICK HERE to see if your City, Town, School has their checkbook on line, If they don’t ask them why not.

4 Comments

Sycamore District refuses to decrease costs to a more conservative operating plan. The time has come to say “Enough”. Sycamore Board’s practice of unbalanced ‘deficit-spending’ budgets with the eventual need for another ‘bail-out’ is here. They plan to convince taxpayers that they need – are deserving and entitled – to continue business-as-usual spending. What they need is a message of “enough is enough”! Their 6.5 mill levy increases our Blue Ash total tax by 18% with school tax increased by 29%. Montgomery will see increases of 18% and 32% respectively.

According to ODE Cupp Report, Sycamore’s FY 2015 PPE (Per Pupil Expenditure) is $14,548 which is 17% more as compared to $12,132 for “similar” Ohio districts. Sycamore spending is 25% higher than the Ohio “statewide” PPE of $10,984. The SchoolDigger ranking of the top 69 Ohio districts with enrollments of more than 4000 students averaged only $11,142 PPE, which is 23.5% lower than Sycamore’s FY ’15 PPE. Based on Sycamore’s FY ’15 Average Daily Enrollment of 5,122 students – in decline since 2006 – and the relevant PPE, Sycamore spent $12.4 million more annually than what “similar” Ohio districts spent; and $17.4 million more annually than the top 69 test-scoring districts in Ohio with greater than 4000 students. There is at least $12 million here that would eliminate the ‘need’ for more taxpayer money to support the 85% of Sycamore’s budget spent on salaries, benefits, retirements (10% “pick-up” Administrators are supposed to pay), over-staffing, perks…

By both comparisons, Sycamore is less efficient – no matter what they claim as the rational or justification for their higher spending. It doesn’t take more money, only more accountability.

Questions: Why doesn’t a premium PPE achieve a better test-score ranking? Why does Sycamore have to spend so much more than their “similar” peers and those with higher test-scoring results? Why doesn’t Sycamore reduce their cost structure instead of asking taxpayers for an additional $11 million? After asking my questions, on June 10 this taxpayer asked our Board to meet to discuss reducing or eliminating the new levy, but has received no response. Why should our district need an extra $11M – or any levy at all? The answer is gutless leadership presuming on an unquestioning community.

Property-owners in the Sycamore district need not feel guilty about voting against this huge Sycamore levy in November. Your NO vote will be a referendum against Sycamore spending $12,400,000 to $17,400,000 more annually than their “similar” Ohio districts and the top 69 test-scoring districts in Ohio. Our Board threatens “it will not be business as usual” if this $11 million levy fails in November! Translation: Though enrollment has been declining for 10 years, we’ve spent millions in cash reserves despite Ohio warnings about the elimination of TPPTR; we’re now in a bind and will assume that our trusting taxpayers will pay more rather than us reduce our exorbitant cost structure. Shame on them! ‘Leadership’ demands that this Board communicate their “contingency plan” for all to see, now.

Here is the biography and phone# as requested:
Colleen Greissinger is a 27 year Blue Ash property owner who always voted “yes” ‘for the kids’ – until questioning, but needing to dig into what is really going on in public education ‘for the adults’.

Phone# 247-0411

Colleen
August 16, 2016 at 9:23 am

Our Sycamore district likewise REFUSED to request an Ohio Auditor’s Performance Audit OR consider the initiative of putting our Checkbook On-Line, as per Josh Mandel’s fine work and encouragement to all government entities in Ohiot. My suggestion is that NO LEVY be considered as legitimate if BOTH of these taxpayer accountability and transparency actions is not being submitted to by the Ohio SCHOOL BOARDS.
Mrs. Colleen Greissinger

Mary Ann
August 16, 2016 at 9:59 am

School funding by property tax/levy is unlawful in Ohio. See: DeRolph v. State was a landmark case in Ohio constitutional law in which the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the state’s method for funding public education was unconstitutional. This was back in March 24, 1997 and confirmed 3 more times. Any school board or county board of elections that put this on the ballot are committing treason.

Colleen
August 16, 2016 at 7:18 pm

I heard that but who and what can be done to enforce the law and punish the treason, Mary Ann?
Colleen

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